Sound Bites
Monday, November 30, 1998
Sound Bites
Pete Rock, "Soul Survivor"
It's hard to believe that at one time Peter Philips (a.k.a. Pete Rock) competed with DJ Premier for the title of hip-hop's best producer. It was the early '90s, and he was known for having a distinctive style which usually included jazzy loops and horns - always the horns. After breaking up with longtime partner in rhyme CL Smooth, Pete Rock essentially faded into obscurity. But now, with a new label and an army of guest appearances from some of the biggest names in hip-hop, the Soul Brother No. 1 returns to the game.
Although billed as a Pete Rock album, in actuality "Soul Survivor" is more of a compilation produced by Pete Rock. Like Da Muggs of Cypress Hill, Pete Rock brings in everybody from the Wu-Tang Clan, Big Punisher, MC Eight, Black Thought and even his old partner, CL Smooth. The final product is a collage of songs that displays Pete Rock's diversity as a producer.
"Truly Yours 98" features the Large Professor and Kool G. Rap, two veterans from the glory days of hip-hop. The song works well as the emcees shine nicely on a bouncy track that moves along at a smooth pace. Pete Rock even comes off nice on the mic (he's a producer, not an emcee) with the line "This I dedicate/ to the mix-tapes I hate/ Exclusive shit, it really holds no weight/ Put your skills on a plate/ back spin to eighty-eight."
The first single, "True Master," features Inspectah Deck and Kurupt rhyming over a so-so instrumental. Though the song is far from wack, it's nothing spectacular - a shame when considering what could have transpired through this collaboration. What was Pete Rock thinking? He's got two of rap's hardest hitters on one song and the beat is a monotonous, medium-paced experiment in mediocrity. If anyone is ever privileged to have Deck and Kurupt on one track, for God's sake, throw on the hardest hitting beat you can create and let them at it!
The album's best song comes when Raekwon and Ghostface Killah of the Wu-Tang Clan team up with Mobb Deep's Prodigy. Pete Rock blesses the trio with a beautiful track laced with a violin that complements Prodigy's smooth flow as well as Raekwon's rugged vocals. Prodigy laces the apocalyptic track with a complementary verse: "So what's ya intentions, you want to glow for the moment?/ Throw in ya two pennies then you boltin'/ I rock for the few chosen who get their third eyes open/ write a page that will engage war and incite fights/ be on look for the bright lights and North Winds/ The trumpets be the mics ya size malevolent."
Other tracks that showcase Pete Rock's production skills are "Respect Mine," featuring OC, "Half Man Half Amazing," with Method Man and "Strange Fruit," featuring Tragedy and Cappadonna. There are three tracks that feature R&B singing and only one of them works, as the other two serve to bore the listener and will have you fast-forwarding to the end of the album.
Pete Rock put together a good compilation; the beats, as usual, are on point and more than enough emcees contribute decent performances. This album shows that Pete Rock has diversity as a producer and never lost his touch. However, that very same diversity is what keeps this from becoming anything close to spectacular. He used to have his own style, but now he's just turning out quality material that shows he can keep up with the rest of the producers out there. A solid album, (wouldn't expect any less with PR producing) "Soul Survivor" serves as a quick fix that will get plenty of play for a few months, though it will not attain the longevity his other albums have enjoyed.
Tenoch Flores
The Cardigans, "Gran Turismo"
All hail Sweden! Home of Ricola, scrumptious chocolate, the Alps, Lucerne. Oh sorry, that's Switzerland. Well let's see, Sweden has Ingmar Bergman and, uh, the Cardigans!
The most well-known band to come out of the recent Swede-pop music scene, which includes Komeda, the Wannadies and Salt, the Cardigans' third album (fourth, if you count "Emmerdale," which never received U.S. distribution) comes off the heels of the successful "First Band on the Moon."
Longtime fans expecting the same light-hearted, lazy, bubble-gum pop that the band has made famous over the years will definitely be surprised by the new direction it has taken. Gone are the days when the Cardigans fit snugly into Milan Kundera's definition of kitsch. Gone are the days of humming to songs like "Carnival" and "Rise and Shine" on sunny Saturday afternoons. Gone are the days of "Lovefool," annoying the pants off of everyone. The Cardigans have gone techno.
Quoi? The Cardigans have gone techno?
Don't expect the Cardigans to play at an all-night electronica music-fest anytime soon, however. Though not entirely ditching their trademark sugary pop, the decision to infuse a few beats here and there reeks of overproduction, thus providing mixed results.
Receiving radio airplay right now is "My Favourite Game," fast and upbeat by Cardigan standards, but lacking in memorable hooks. What the new Cardigans have also spawned are atrocious songs such as "Erase/Rewind," with so much pseudo-spirituality in its music that it could only be enjoyed at a Deepak Chopra guru seminar.
"Gran Turismo" is at its best when Nina Persson and company slows things down with songs like "Explode" and the uplifting "Higher" ("Oh take us higher/ Come take us high above our time/ We'll make it out of here").
After producing so much musical joy with "Life" and "First Band on the Moon," "Gran Turismo" is a major disappointment. While change and experimentation in a band are admirable, bad songs are not.
Tristan Thai
SCOTT4, "Recorded in State"
This record is, besides a rather unsavory sedative, a fairly poor attempt at post-modern folk regression, the type of thing Beck is making millions off of and pissants like SCOTT4 are rather meekly rephrasing. The band's problem can be attributed to the utterly unendearing frontman Scott Blixen (assuming he's the frontman - all the songs are attributed to him). He holds the band back. Either that or they're all working together to hold each other back, in which case, hey, its working.
The intro has us listening, for a while. The guitars are lazy, rootsy, dirty - and a drummer churns out equally dirty breakbeats. Gradually the funky backwoods acoustics dissolve into an out-of-date drum machine interpretation and analogue synth effects. One may think, OK, possibly the pseudo-modernization of the bluegrass sensibility. The folk guitars ride the range of Blixen's emotions, from subdued, almost reluctantly nihilist depression, to alcoholic serenity, to some type of contrived roadhouse vigor that no one will really get.
Blixen grinds, but not in a congenial, Tom Waits way. He gets on the nerves. The drummer is static but solid, slanting the music with hip-hop and rock beats where they're needed, as little post-Beck electro-embellishments wink on and off in the background.
So why buy this album? Maybe you like Smashmouth's cheesy stream-of-consciousness, modern incompatibility lyricism and want to get back to the roots, but wouldn't know a good blues record if Albert King forced it through your ear. This crap would be just right for lonely airport cocktail bars, but not much more.
Wes MedinaPete Rock
Soul Survivor
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